Actually, I think lack of respect for patents and copyright laws is probably one of the big drivers in the Chinese economic boom. Because there's no artificial limitations on what you can build and sell, all manner of artefacts are effectively 'open source'.
This poster was clearly not suggesting that the Chinese find a cool product, steal it, and then update and innovate and use the community to develop new stuff. Instead, "open source" is being misused in place of "free". The poster's comment about Windows is that, much like open source linux, you can go online and easily find and download the latest version for free. In context, his meaning is pretty clear.
This information could theoretically come from the account information, but is not done this way in practice. Many consumers use different billing addresses from the primary location where they use their VoIP. There are now two common methods for populating ALI info.
Over the top VoIP providers, such as Vonage, have a big notice about E-911 issues with their service, and make each customer populate their own ALI information in their online account. This is somewhat risky, since these VoIP service tend to be nomadic-I can use my Vonage ATA to connect to any broadband connection, and if I change my location, it is up to me to update my ALI status. (There are horror stories of people setting up at a hotel, having a heart attack, calling 911, and having the ambulance show up at their house).
Providers of integrated VoIP, such as Comcast, have developed ways to use the IP address associated with the VoIP call to lookup the physical address of the caller. This works because Comcast is also providing the underlying broadband connection, which is tied to a particular physical location.
The FCC discussed these complications in a 2005 Order which required providers like Vonage to take extra steps to notify customers about the 911 risks, and to collect accurate ALI information.
Understanding is always the understanding of a smaller problem in relation to a bigger problem. -- P.D. Ouspensky